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Nvidia has agreed to provide a guarantee of up to $105 billion to help OpenAI lease a sprawling data center in Ohio being developed by SoftBank-owned SB Energy, in one of the chipmaker's largest infrastructure financing commitments. The Jensen Huang-led firm said on Monday it will also invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy, months after a $1 billion investment from OpenAI and SoftBank to expand data center infrastructure. The new deal is the latest example of Nvidia financing the infrastructure built around its chips, a strategy that helps drive demand but has also raised questions about ⁠circular funding flows between ⁠the chipmaker and its customers. Last week, scrutiny of such funding deepened after Nvidiapartnered with six major financial institutions including BlackRock to launch financing platforms targeting more than $500 billion in third-party funding for AI infrastructure. Huang said the new deal was not circular financing and that Nvidia is using "its scale and long-term visibility" to help. "We are securing long-lived infrastructure for Nvidia compute so OpenAI can deploy the most productive AI factories that can be upgraded repeatedly with each new generation delivering more intelligence and better economics," Huang said. The company will be the exclusive chip provider for the facility in Pike County, Ohio, which will have a total capacity of as much as 8 gigawatts, with the first 800 megawatts expected to come online in 2028. OpenAI is leasing the site for 20 years. The financing structure is not yet defined and will include equity, people with knowledge ⁠of the matter said. The equity may include capital raised by a potential SB Energy IPO and Softbank direct investment, they said. After the total equity amount is defined, there will be a debt portion that will probably include project finance loans and potentially public debt such as bonds, the people said, asking for ⁠anonymity to disclose private discussions. LAND, POWER ARE KEY HURDLES FOR DATA CENTERS Land and power are increasingly becoming a hurdle for data centers due to the aging and strained U.S. grid and growing opposition to new construction from communities worried about higher electricity prices as well as potential water wastage. Nvidia said its guarantee covers a portion of the lease and power payments, as well as a commitment to ensure the site retains a minimum value, rather than the full cost of the project or all of OpenAI's obligations. OpenAI will pay the rent, but if it defaults, Nvidia will cover the gap between that guaranteed minimum value and whatever the owner can recoup by re-leasing or selling the site. Nvidia said it plans to selectively lock up prime sites where its chips can run for multiple generations in the future. "Investors are right to be worried about what seems to be a never-ending loop of AI deals but realistically the field of players isn't all that vast and there was always going to be a degree of circular financing," said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell. "The biggest test is whether these investments ultimately generate decent returns for all those laying out cash and that's something that can only be figured out further down ⁠the line." Huang said the site, which would have an initial capacity of 4.25 gigawatts, could contribute as much as $200 billion to Nvidia's revenue. One gigawatt of computing power is enough electricity to power roughly 750,000 U.S. homes on average. Overall, Nvidia could make $600 billion in revenue from OpenAI by 2030 by selling it 16 gigawatts of computing power, including an expansion of the Ohio site by 3.75 gigawatts. To support the site, SoftBank and SB Energy plan to build at least 10 gigawatt of new power generation and invest $4.2 billion in new regional grid infrastructure through a partnership with AEP Ohio. The project is expected to create about 35,000 construction jobs through 2032 and about 2,500 long-term operating jobs, the ChatGPT maker said. The project has a low risk of construction delays due to local opposition, the sources added, as the state has been supportive due to the job creation and a commitment OpenAI and SoftBank commitment to fund $80 million in community projects. The project includes federal land and has the involvement of the U.S. Departments of Commerce and Energy.

Outgoing Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace hit back at the media firestorm caused by her newly posted bikini photos that revealed no fewer than nine new tattoos. The 48-year-old South Carolinian bared her tattooed arms in a bikini during a high-octane introduction for Get Maced, featuring her surfing and firing an automatic weapon. Her posts caused a stir on the internet, with Fox News commentator Raymond Arroyo calling it 'a cry for help.' However, Mace addressed the controversy and seemed baffled by all the concern over her physical appearance in a post on social media. 'Thoughts and prayers to all those affected by my sleeves. Made the mistake of opening my social media this afternoon. Some of y'all are OUT OF CONTROL,' Mace wrote. 'My biceps should NOT be a news story. We have more important things to worry about. Goodness. And God Bless America.' Arroyo joined the chorus of commentators on Laura Ingraham's show Monday suggesting that Mace's actions could even have a negative effect on other women. 'My heart goes out to her and it sounds like there was some traumatic things. But tats are not therapy. This is a cry for help. But this is a bad message to women,' he said. Outgoing Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace hit back at the media firestorm caused by her newly posted bikini photos that revealed no fewer than nine new tattoos Her posts caused a stir on the internet, with Fox News commentator Raymond Arroyo (pictured right) calling it 'a cry for help' Arroyo, who works for the Catholic-themed cable network EWTN, also slammed her for getting a tattoo of the Virgin Mary. 'She does have the Virgin Mary on the arm there. I wish she would pray to the Virgin Mary rather than placing a tattoo of her on her bicep,' he said. Mace first revealed in a February Politico profile that she got nine tattoos in rapid succession during a tumultuous period marked by the end of her engagement and the departure of her entire congressional staff. She says she got inked to experience 'the pain that I need to feel.' She described the tattoos as a way to 'reclaim' her body and identity after years of trauma she has publicly detailed, including being molested and raped as a teenager. One is the opening line from Virginia Woolf's novel Mrs Dalloway: 'Mrs Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself.' Other designs include the word 'Justice,' a saintly figure, a lion, a bird, a flower and a sun. Donald Trump, whom Mace has described as a 'father figure,' has taken an interest in her ink, telling a group of South Carolina politicos last December that he had heard she had a number of 'freaky tattoos,' Fits News reported. Mace revealed the new tattoos in promotional footage for her YouTube show Get Maced Mace's ink stunned the internet with many believing that the snaps were AI-generated The 48-year-old South Carolinian bared her tattooed arms in a bikini during a high-octane introduction for Get Maced, featuring her surfing and firing an automatic weapon Until last week, Mace had almost entirely concealed the work in public appearances, even as she campaigned for governor and continued serving in the House. She finished a distant fifth in the June Republican primary for South Carolina governor after failing to win Trump's endorsement and later passed on a potential Senate bid after the death of Lindsey Graham. Her term ends in January 2027, leaving her without an elected office for the first time in almost a decade. The YouTube channel, where she plans to comment on daily news, already features segments on topics ranging from the WNBA to 'radical Islam.' In the intro video, Mace appears in a black bikini and later sleeveless at a microphone, making the tattoos impossible to miss. Social media users reacted with a mix of shock and mockery, with some refusing to believe the images were not AI-generated. 'What the f***,' one X user wrote. Another said: 'We're living in a simulation.' Mace has long framed her personal struggles as central to her political identity. 'My story is I am totally broken,' she told Politico in February. 'I have PTSD over what I've been through.' Trump walks from Marine One to his limousine upon his arrival at the White House on Sunday Mace's term ends in January 2027, leaving her without elected office for the first time in almost a decade She has spoken repeatedly about a difficult relationship with her father, a decorated Vietnam War hero, and about suffering sexual abuse as a teenager. The tattoos arrived amid a period of intense therapy and legal battles stemming from her February 2025 House floor speech accusing her former fiancé and three associates of sex abuse. All four men denied the claims. Litigation continues, with Mace at times representing herself. 'It's just my reaction and my response,' she said of the ink. 'And it keeps me alive.' Mace worked on Trump's 2016 campaign and remained a visible ally until her support for releasing the Epstein files created distance between them. She told NewsNation last month that the split 'may have ended' her future political aspirations. With her House career winding down, the YouTube venture marks her clearest attempt to stay in the public eye on her own terms. The promo ends with the simple declaration: 'What happens when a Bulldog leaves Washington? She takes the fight to the people.'